Will be Glad When School Starts

17-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:

Monday, July 22, 1912: Heard that school starts on the 26th of August. I’ll be glad when that day arrives. I’d rather go to school than have to hardly anything else, and I’m not going any places any ways.

Recent photo of building that once housed McEwensville School.

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

When I was a teen I always dreaded the end of summer vacation—but Grandma seemed to miss school.

. .. . though she probably had to work harder on the farm during the summer months than I did. And, I suppose she missed her friends.

This was before sports team, camps, and everything else that keeps kids busy today, so I am sure she was tired of working and wanted to see her friends again…my summers were usually boring too most of my friends lived outside the neighborhood – the problem with living in a large city, we all took local city buses to school, and like your grandmother I was glad when Sept came around and it was time to socialize again! Can’t remember doing much studying!! LOL Patty

I remember being excited when school time came around in elementary school but no so much during junior and senior high school. I wasn’t very social anyway and I liked being in control of my own time, even when I had a summer job. During college I took classes year around.

I always enjoyed school unless I had a teacher where we could not communicate. Every once in a while, I’d run into a teacher that had no idea what I was talking about and I had no idea what they were talking about. Then it was difficult.

That’s an impressive school house for 100 years ago. My dad went to school in the country, a very small 1 room wooden building. I recently got a class picture from a friend of his, she knew and named everyone in the photo. Needless to say, I was thrilled. Daddy only went to grade nine, back then I guess that was normal for farm kids.